I just bought a 1965 beetle that was listed as having a "blown motor."  I got it home and with a little work got the engine started.  After warming up, I tried revving the engine a bit.  It had some loud tell-tale knocking noise.

Here are my questions:

1. Is it a thrown rod?  Seems to be one knock per revolution, and pretty loud metal on metal.

2. Is it rebuildable?  I think it's a stock 1200, even though it has a 12v generator and battery, I'm certain that the starter is a 6 volt one.

3. If I buy a rebuilt engine to replace it, should I go with a 1600?  If so, can I mount a 180mm (6 volt) flywheel to a 1600 style long block?  If I go with just a longblock, and not a turnkey, will my stock 1200 parts fit on a 1600?

Several years ago I sold a guy an engine I had for a little cash and his old engine that was "knocking."  When I started to tear his old engine down, I found the rocker shaft on one side was loose.  Torqued it down and started it up . . . no knock.  Chances are it's a worn/burnt up rod bearing, but sometimes you get lucky.

Quote from: jaysen on October 01, 2012, 09:03:41 PM

I'm guessing that if I pull the engine and take everything apart, I'll be able to fix the problem and put it back together again?

Get a good manual, take your time, ask a lot of questions as you go.  It's not hard, but you gott'a do it right . . . and it's cheapest to do it right the FIRST time.  I know that from experiance    When it comes to asking questions using this forum (any internet forum for that matter) remember that a picture is worth a thousand words.  You can do it!